If your kid was a top student and didn’t get into a top college

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s roughly 400 kids graduating from DCs school this year. The top kids have been in the same classes all 4 years and know each other’s ranking and test scores. The top 2% of graduating class (8 kids) all had 4.0 uw and 1500+ SATs. This is how acceptances went for them:

1. Carnegie Mellon (shut out of Ivies)
2. UMD (shut out of Ivies and top SLACs)
3. UMD (shut out of Ivies)
4. Johns Hopkins (recruited athlete)
5. Yale (first gen)
6. UMD
7. Penn (first gen)
8. Princeton (URM)

All great, hard working, top scores, excellent EC kids, but like PP said there just isn’t enough room for all high achievers at the tippy top.

And all eight are pathetic for knowing each other's grades, rankings, test scores, and college application choices and results -- and any parent who knows all of this about all eight is even more pathetic.

The kids share this information freely with each other and obsess over it for most of their senior year. Parents get the information without even trying. In fact, I think PP substituted UMD for another state school because it matches what I know about kids I’ve never met at our school.

Goodness gracious. Which HS is this?

I can almost -- almost understand kids "sharing this information freely." Almost. But "parents getting this information without even trying?" Nope. Certainly not to the point of remembering it all to the degree that this poster did. That takes effort. Unhealthy effort. Obsessive effort. Insane effort.

Im guessing you don’t live in the DMV. If your kid has class with these kids, they’re going to know and talk about it when they’re all stressing about applications (and rejections in particular because “why Larla but not me?”) . I will say they’re all very kind and supportive of each other though. Impressively so. Mine just lets out the sad in the privacy of home.

I very much live in the DMV, our kids are high achievers, and they attend a highly regarded public high school. The ones who have graduated have gone on to top colleges. And I don't know any kids or parents who know or care to know this much information about their classmates and friends. It's not the norm -- it just isn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s roughly 400 kids graduating from DCs school this year. The top kids have been in the same classes all 4 years and know each other’s ranking and test scores. The top 2% of graduating class (8 kids) all had 4.0 uw and 1500+ SATs. This is how acceptances went for them:

1. Carnegie Mellon (shut out of Ivies)
2. UMD (shut out of Ivies and top SLACs)
3. UMD (shut out of Ivies)
4. Johns Hopkins (recruited athlete)
5. Yale (first gen)
6. UMD
7. Penn (first gen)
8. Princeton (URM)

All great, hard working, top scores, excellent EC kids, but like PP said there just isn’t enough room for all high achievers at the tippy top.

And all eight are pathetic for knowing each other's grades, rankings, test scores, and college application choices and results -- and any parent who knows all of this about all eight is even more pathetic.

The kids share this information freely with each other and obsess over it for most of their senior year. Parents get the information without even trying. In fact, I think PP substituted UMD for another state school because it matches what I know about kids I’ve never met at our school.

Goodness gracious. Which HS is this?

I can almost -- almost understand kids "sharing this information freely." Almost. But "parents getting this information without even trying?" Nope. Certainly not to the point of remembering it all to the degree that this poster did. That takes effort. Unhealthy effort. Obsessive effort. Insane effort.

I'm PP who listed the class standings in the hope of showing that Ivy admissions is not the end all. There will be plenty of hard working and intelligent kids at your state school.

Unfortunately, I know that it is not like this at most schools, but I am so grateful for the experience that my DC had throughout school. Out of the 8 kids listed, 6 are routinely at my house. 5 of them have been together since 6th grade. What started out as mandatory group projects in my basement, evolved into weekly study sessions for whatever big test was coming up, to movie nights in my basement. Those 6 supported one another throughout high school. They were there for the sporting events, the break ups, and the poor grades. They studied for the SATs together and I even drove 3 to their testing days. They attended campus visits together and worked on applications. I was there with them since 6th grade celebrating their successes and being there for them in their defeats. I fed them, cheered them on at sporting events, and drove them everywhere imaginable just like their parents did for my DC.

I am so happy for these kids and I know that they will all go on to wonderful lives no matter where they go to college. They know the importance of teamwork and building others up. I wish that every kid had this opportunity in high school and for my DC as they head to college, I hope that they can find a similar group of people.

[Anonymous]

PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

Oh, please. It’s normal for a teenager to wonder why they weren’t picked for something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s roughly 400 kids graduating from DCs school this year. The top kids have been in the same classes all 4 years and know each other’s ranking and test scores. The top 2% of graduating class (8 kids) all had 4.0 uw and 1500+ SATs. This is how acceptances went for them:

1. Carnegie Mellon (shut out of Ivies)
2. UMD (shut out of Ivies and top SLACs)
3. UMD (shut out of Ivies)
4. Johns Hopkins (recruited athlete)
5. Yale (first gen)
6. UMD
7. Penn (first gen)
8. Princeton (URM)

All great, hard working, top scores, excellent EC kids, but like PP said there just isn’t enough room for all high achievers at the tippy top.

And all eight are pathetic for knowing each other's grades, rankings, test scores, and college application choices and results -- and any parent who knows all of this about all eight is even more pathetic.

The kids share this information freely with each other and obsess over it for most of their senior year. Parents get the information without even trying. In fact, I think PP substituted UMD for another state school because it matches what I know about kids I’ve never met at our school.

Goodness gracious. Which HS is this?

I can almost -- almost understand kids "sharing this information freely." Almost. But "parents getting this information without even trying?" Nope. Certainly not to the point of remembering it all to the degree that this poster did. That takes effort. Unhealthy effort. Obsessive effort. Insane effort.

I'm PP who listed the class standings in the hope of showing that Ivy admissions is not the end all. There will be plenty of hard working and intelligent kids at your state school.

Unfortunately, I know that it is not like this at most schools, but I am so grateful for the experience that my DC had throughout school. Out of the 8 kids listed, 6 are routinely at my house. 5 of them have been together since 6th grade. What started out as mandatory group projects in my basement, evolved into weekly study sessions for whatever big test was coming up, to movie nights in my basement. Those 6 supported one another throughout high school. They were there for the sporting events, the break ups, and the poor grades. They studied for the SATs together and I even drove 3 to their testing days. They attended campus visits together and worked on applications. I was there with them since 6th grade celebrating their successes and being there for them in their defeats. I fed them, cheered them on at sporting events, and drove them everywhere imaginable just like their parents did for my DC.

I am so happy for these kids and I know that they will all go on to wonderful lives no matter where they go to college. They know the importance of teamwork and building others up. I wish that every kid had this opportunity in high school and for my DC as they head to college, I hope that they can find a similar group of people.

And I call complete and total BS although I congratulate you on your feeble attempt to back track and justify your obsession. It just so happens that the top 8 students in your kid's class of FOUR HUNDRED all happen to hang out at YOUR house and have been doing that since sixth grade? And, no, they're not competitive and neither are you and it's all about supporting each other yet they all know each others' precise GPAs, test scores, classes, college applications, acceptance/rejections, etc.?

Just. Stop. This is an anonymous forum. No reason to lie to us -- or yourself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only 2,500 stand alone National Merit Scholars picked by the foundation have ALL one can achieve in this process. They screen all finalists and pick ones who have SAT/ACT, GPA, class rank, AP scores, course rigor, college courses, essay writing skills, school recommendations, extracurriculars, leadership skills, character, dedicated community service and vision of future.

So what? If you need a 224 in Maryland to become a NMSF but only a 207 in North Dakota or West Virginia, it’s not really based on merit.

Well, there are few, if any, brick and mortar SAT prep centers in ND or WV, so if you get a 207 there you've probably done the best compared to your peers and with what you have access to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

Oh, please. It’s normal for a teenager to wonder why they weren’t picked for something.

Nope. Normal kids understand the randomness of elite college admissions and don't ask this. Mine never came home and cried over a friend's or acquaintances's college acceptance that was "better" than theirs. Maybe it's because they never knew anybody else's "stats" or college applications to the friggin' letter! It's ODD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s roughly 400 kids graduating from DCs school this year. The top kids have been in the same classes all 4 years and know each other’s ranking and test scores. The top 2% of graduating class (8 kids) all had 4.0 uw and 1500+ SATs. This is how acceptances went for them:

1. Carnegie Mellon (shut out of Ivies)
2. UMD (shut out of Ivies and top SLACs)
3. UMD (shut out of Ivies)
4. Johns Hopkins (recruited athlete)
5. Yale (first gen)
6. UMD
7. Penn (first gen)
8. Princeton (URM)

All great, hard working, top scores, excellent EC kids, but like PP said there just isn’t enough room for all high achievers at the tippy top.

And all eight are pathetic for knowing each other's grades, rankings, test scores, and college application choices and results -- and any parent who knows all of this about all eight is even more pathetic.

The kids share this information freely with each other and obsess over it for most of their senior year. Parents get the information without even trying. In fact, I think PP substituted UMD for another state school because it matches what I know about kids I’ve never met at our school.

Goodness gracious. Which HS is this?

I can almost -- almost understand kids "sharing this information freely." Almost. But "parents getting this information without even trying?" Nope. Certainly not to the point of remembering it all to the degree that this poster did. That takes effort. Unhealthy effort. Obsessive effort. Insane effort.

I'm PP who listed the class standings in the hope of showing that Ivy admissions is not the end all. There will be plenty of hard working and intelligent kids at your state school.

Unfortunately, I know that it is not like this at most schools, but I am so grateful for the experience that my DC had throughout school. Out of the 8 kids listed, 6 are routinely at my house. 5 of them have been together since 6th grade. What started out as mandatory group projects in my basement, evolved into weekly study sessions for whatever big test was coming up, to movie nights in my basement. Those 6 supported one another throughout high school. They were there for the sporting events, the break ups, and the poor grades. They studied for the SATs together and I even drove 3 to their testing days. They attended campus visits together and worked on applications. I was there with them since 6th grade celebrating their successes and being there for them in their defeats. I fed them, cheered them on at sporting events, and drove them everywhere imaginable just like their parents did for my DC.

I am so happy for these kids and I know that they will all go on to wonderful lives no matter where they go to college. They know the importance of teamwork and building others up. I wish that every kid had this opportunity in high school and for my DC as they head to college, I hope that they can find a similar group of people.

And I call complete and total BS although I congratulate you on your feeble attempt to back track and justify your obsession. It just so happens that the top 8 students in your kid's class of FOUR HUNDRED all happen to hang out at YOUR house and have been doing that since sixth grade? And, no, they're not competitive and neither are you and it's all about supporting each other yet they all know each others' precise GPAs, test scores, classes, college applications, acceptance/rejections, etc.?

Just. Stop. This is an anonymous forum. No reason to lie to us -- or yourself.

And then they pick each other for leadership positions when they’re running against kids outside the group. So they all help pad each other’s applications. PP sounds like a Tiger mom who managed everything down to friendships but pretends to be so virtuous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

Oh, please. It’s normal for a teenager to wonder why they weren’t picked for something.

Nope. Normal kids understand the randomness of elite college admissions and don't ask this. Mine never came home and cried over a friend's or acquaintances's college acceptance that was "better" than theirs. Maybe it's because they never knew anybody else's "stats" or college applications to the friggin' letter! It's ODD.

Neither did mine. But they did cry because something they worked and wished for didn’t happen. You sound like a sociopath.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

Oh, please. It’s normal for a teenager to wonder why they weren’t picked for something.

Nope. Normal kids understand the randomness of elite college admissions and don't ask this. Mine never came home and cried over a friend's or acquaintances's college acceptance that was "better" than theirs. Maybe it's because they never knew anybody else's "stats" or college applications to the friggin' letter! It's ODD.

Neither did mine. But they did cry because something they worked and wished for didn’t happen. You sound like a sociopath.

Sure, that has happened. But they didn't turn around and bash friggin' Larlo or Larla and paint them as less deserving. You can be sad but that doesn't give you license to 'dis others. That's not what well raised kids do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s roughly 400 kids graduating from DCs school this year. The top kids have been in the same classes all 4 years and know each other’s ranking and test scores. The top 2% of graduating class (8 kids) all had 4.0 uw and 1500+ SATs. This is how acceptances went for them:

1. Carnegie Mellon (shut out of Ivies)
2. UMD (shut out of Ivies and top SLACs)
3. UMD (shut out of Ivies)
4. Johns Hopkins (recruited athlete)
5. Yale (first gen)
6. UMD
7. Penn (first gen)
8. Princeton (URM)

All great, hard working, top scores, excellent EC kids, but like PP said there just isn’t enough room for all high achievers at the tippy top.

And all eight are pathetic for knowing each other's grades, rankings, test scores, and college application choices and results -- and any parent who knows all of this about all eight is even more pathetic.

The kids share this information freely with each other and obsess over it for most of their senior year. Parents get the information without even trying. In fact, I think PP substituted UMD for another state school because it matches what I know about kids I’ve never met at our school.

Goodness gracious. Which HS is this?

I can almost -- almost understand kids "sharing this information freely." Almost. But "parents getting this information without even trying?" Nope. Certainly not to the point of remembering it all to the degree that this poster did. That takes effort. Unhealthy effort. Obsessive effort. Insane effort.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

Oh, please. It’s normal for a teenager to wonder why they weren’t picked for something.

Nope. Normal kids understand the randomness of elite college admissions and don't ask this. Mine never came home and cried over a friend's or acquaintances's college acceptance that was "better" than theirs. Maybe it's because they never knew anybody else's "stats" or college applications to the friggin' letter! It's ODD.

Neither did mine. But they did cry because something they worked and wished for didn’t happen. You sound like a sociopath.

Sure, that has happened. But they didn't turn around and bash friggin' Larlo or Larla and paint them as less deserving. You can be sad but that doesn't give you license to 'dis others. That's not what well raised kids do.[/quote

And that’s not what I said. But you decided to interpret it that way do you could pat yourself on the back. My kid has never painted anyone as less deserving, just wondered why they were not picked too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

Oh, please. It’s normal for a teenager to wonder why they weren’t picked for something.

Nope. Normal kids understand the randomness of elite college admissions and don't ask this. Mine never came home and cried over a friend's or acquaintances's college acceptance that was "better" than theirs. Maybe it's because they never knew anybody else's "stats" or college applications to the friggin' letter! It's ODD.

Hello? You are posting on a board that exists to allow parents to obsess over where their kids will get into college, what stats it might take, whether not taking one specific AP course is the death knell for all their college hopes and dreams, which tutor/outside advisor to pay thousands of dollars to to increase their chances, whether private or public school gives them a better chance, etc etc etc and the actual teens who are applying are supposed to be above wondering who got in and how they compare to those who did?

Give me a break.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

Oh, please. It’s normal for a teenager to wonder why they weren’t picked for something.

Nope. Normal kids understand the randomness of elite college admissions and don't ask this. Mine never came home and cried over a friend's or acquaintances's college acceptance that was "better" than theirs. Maybe it's because they never knew anybody else's "stats" or college applications to the friggin' letter! It's ODD.

Neither did mine. But they did cry because something they worked and wished for didn’t happen. You sound like a sociopath.

Sure, that has happened. But they didn't turn around and bash friggin' Larlo or Larla and paint them as less deserving. You can be sad but that doesn't give you license to 'dis others. That's not what well raised kids do.

And that’s not what I said. You just jumped on the opportunity to praise yourself and assume the worst of someone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here. My kids have also never asked "why Larlo and not me?" That's not how they were raised to think.

Oh, please. It’s normal for a teenager to wonder why they weren’t picked for something.

Nope. Normal kids understand the randomness of elite college admissions and don't ask this. Mine never came home and cried over a friend's or acquaintances's college acceptance that was "better" than theirs. Maybe it's because they never knew anybody else's "stats" or college applications to the friggin' letter! It's ODD.

Hello? You are posting on a board that exists to allow parents to obsess over where their kids will get into college, what stats it might take, whether not taking one specific AP course is the death knell for all their college hopes and dreams, which tutor/outside advisor to pay thousands of dollars to to increase their chances, whether private or public school gives them a better chance, etc etc etc and the actual teens who are applying are supposed to be above wondering who got in and how they compare to those who did?

Give me a break.

The purpose of this board, at least so far as I am concerned, is not limited to "obsessing" over where kids will go to college or what stats and classes may be required. It's to share information on a wide variety of college-related issues.